Friday October 26, 2012

Think about your life. Is there something you need to repent of? Think of your heart (emotions) your head (the way you think) and your hands (the way you act and speak.

 

 

Read Micah 7:18-20;  Psalm 118:5-9;

Psalm 33;  Psalm 130 and Isaiah 11:9

 

So what do we actually know about the conduct of the Feast of Trumpets? Tradition tells us much! We know that the week from this feast to Yom Kippur (see next week) was known as the Day’s of Awe. It was believed that divine judgement was metered out during this time to  determine if a person would live or die during the following year.  It was seen as the last chance to repent before the judgement of God was handed down.

 

As such, the week before Rosh Hashanah was seen as a time of repentance.  People would participate in a ceremony called Tashlikh (which means to cast off) in which one was purified and cast off one’s sins.  The prayer recited is a composition of today’s passages and ends as the pray-er casts bread into the water or empties his pockets as symbolic cleansing and carrying away of his sins. It picks up on Micah 7:19 where God promises to cast their sins into the depths of the ocean.

 

God’s people today need a grim reminder that repentance is not optional. We need that initial repentance when we first come to Christ but then need constant repentance as God shows us things that are wrong or displeasing in our lives. I remember a time when I was awoken by the Lord early in the morning. In those wee hours of the morning God showed me 5 things that were displeasing to Himself. It was a mix of things in my heart, my head and hands.  At first it was hard to take but soon, after repenting, I found an unmatchable joy. It was like being healed from cancer. God removed a burden from me that allowed joy into my life more than it had been for a long time.

 

Sin does just that. It robs us of joy. Satan lies to us that the particular sin will bring joy and pleasure and instant happiness. Perhaps it does bring a quick, cheap thrill but soon it wears off. Left unhindered, we find ourselves engrossed in larger, more intense and often more morbid sins. Repentance is the antidote that cures sin and brings back true, God given, eternal joy.

 

But you may be wondering where you can start. You may be so entrenched in sin that you can’t see any way out. You may have come to accept your sin as a normal and healthy part of your life. You need to cry out to God. God grants repentance (Acts 11:18 cf Ezekiel 36:26) and we must ask Him to provide. Secondly  find a mature Christian that you can talk with, pray with and work with.

 

Rise up! Repent. Rediscover the joy of eternal life.

 

Prayer:

Use today’s reading and notes to write down ideas for your prayers.

 

Adoration:

 

Confession:

 

Thanks:

 

Supplication:

¥ Pray that God would be granting repentance to those in your congregation that need it. Pray that God’s grace and mercy would so overwhelm these people that they willingly, even joyously, seek God for repentance and start to live His way. Pray that each person in your congregation would be filled with  a deep seated joy from the Lord.

¥ Pray that this Sonday’s celebration and gathering would be a great time of healing, wholeness and guidance from the Lord. Pray that God would be powerfully among you and your brothers and sisters.